By Karolos Grohmann
BERLIN, June 1 (Reuters) - When England take to the field in Dallas on June 17 to face Croatia in their World Cup opener, all eyes will be on captain Harry Kane, with fans hoping he can carry his record-breaking scoring run for Bayern Munich into the tournament and help end their 60-year wait for an international title.
The 32-year-old, who just completed his third season at Bayern, scored 61 goals across all competitions for his club in this campaign including 14 in the Champions
League, where Bayern were eliminated in the semi-final by holders Paris St Germain.
With 36 goals in his 31 league appearances, Kane earned a third straight Bundesliga top scorer crown, the first player to do that in his first three seasons in the German top division.
Having left boyhood club Tottenham Hotspur in search of major club titles that had eluded him until his 2024 move, Kane has earned two Bundesliga crowns as well as a German Cup following his hat-trick in the final against VfB Stuttgart on May 23.
"This is the best transfer we have ever made," said Bayern supremo and honorary president Uli Hoeness after his Cup final performance.
In a dazzling season where Bayern shattered the league's all-time goal record, Kane surpassed the total goal haul of any previous season at Bayern or Tottenham. In his first campaign with Bayern, he hit 44 goals in 45 competitive appearances.
"(In England) his finishing was never underestimated, his leadership was never underestimated but what we see a lot more here is his distribution, his work rate, his game intelligence," said Bayern coach Vincent Kompany.
"That is something that we have been able to enjoy that probably was underrated in England. He is aging like fine wine. I am enjoying seeing that side of his game."
MASSIVE EXPECTATIONS
With England's only World Cup win dating back to 1966, it is normal for Three Lions fans to be looking at Kane as the one player who can carry the weight of expectations in this tournament, co-hosted by Mexico, United States and Canada.
England coach Thomas Tuchel has only praise for his captain.
“How does he always find the gap to shoot through and score," Tuchel marvelled at Kane's scoring ability during an England training session earlier in the year. "It’s impossible, it’s impossible. Everything is closed - the guy finds the gap.”
There is no doubt that Kane's finishing is world class but what has been crucial to his Bayern goal haul this season has been the deliveries of teammates Michael Olise and Luis Diaz.
With the arrival of Colombia international Diaz from Liverpool at the start of the season, and despite the absence of injured attacking midfielder Jamal Musiala for more than six months, Bayern had a potent attacking trio.
In the Bundesliga alone France international Olise and Diaz delivered a combined 33 assists, the vast majority of them for Kane.
ENGLAND OPTIONS
Kane's England partners up front will likely be Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke, Jude Bellingham and Marcus Rashford.
Kane is England's all-time record scorer with 78 goals from 112 matches. He is also the record-holder for most goals as England captain as well as most in major tournaments.
His importance to the team was again clear in England's last two internationals in March, which he missed due to injury, and his team managed only one goal in their 1-1 home draw with Uruguay and a 1-0 defeat by visiting Japan.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Ed Osmond)
